my new alphas ito ai not so new

[GamblerHydra]

I have said it before there was a bad batch of The Alphas ito Ai at some point. I really believe that they got reconditioned and sent back out, or wholeseller got them and sold them back out. There was just to many issues with them. There was alao a weird influx of them , after a period of limited avaiablity. I went thru 4 before I found one I like. However, even with that one I had to constantly maintain it to make it perform. This is all documented somewhere on this board.

If we were honest with ourselves we would realize at this point it will be hard to find a NIB Alphas ito Ai, TD-ito etc. Since they are out of production I do not care what I read, I think the best we can realistically hopeful is Mint. Alot of times Mint is good enough for some to sale as new.

Additionally, Fishingboy is correct, and this has been going on for sometime , though many refuse to believe it.

With that said ichibahn has always been good to me. I just picked up a Type-R from him from $275 that is mint. The description was exactly has he described it. My beef is just what is up with the monster shipping charges. I would buy alot more if not for that. He has alot of great discontinued lures.

xxlbass... there should not be any scratches on the sideplate on the thumb screw side. The handle side it might. Hopefully your using this reel, it sounds like you are. It is made to take abuse so I think your taking the right attitude. The shipping cost are to crazy to sweat it.

[bassbandit]

A couple of months ago Ichiban had a NIB box Alphas Ito for $275. I bought it and when I got it, I was disappointed to see scratches on it. When I emailed Ichiban, they said that I had ordered a used one. I insisted that the reel I had ordered was listed as NIB. They checked their records and told me that they had made a mistake. Another person had ordered a used Alphas Ito at the same time as me and I received the used one while the other person received the NIB. The only positive thing about the whole experience was that they did refund the price of the reel and the cost of shipping back to Japan. When they received it, they gave me a story about how the reel was buffed and the scratches were normal. I may not be the smartest guy, but when a reel comes with scratches, I can tell it's not new.
I have had other dealings with Ichiban since then and they have been positive, but I have made up my mind to not buy any reels from them.

[xxlbass]

I have said it before there was a bad batch of The Alphas ito Ai at some point. I really believe that they got reconditioned and sent back out, or wholeseller got them and sold them back out. There was just to many issues with them. There was alao a weird influx of them , after a period of limited avaiablity. I went thru 4 before I found one I like. However, even with that one I had to constantly maintain it to make it perform. This is all documented somewhere on this board.

If we were honest with ourselves we would realize at this point it will be hard to find a NIB Alphas ito Ai, TD-ito etc. Since they are out of production I do not care what I read, I think the best we can realistically hopeful is Mint. Alot of times Mint is good enough for some to sale as new.

Additionally, Fishingboy is correct, and this has been going on for sometime , though many refuse to believe it.

With that said ichibahn has always been good to me. I just picked up a Type-R from him from $275 that is mint. The description was exactly has he described it. My beef is just what is up with the monster shipping charges. I would buy alot more if not for that. He has alot of great discontinued lures.

xxlbass... there should not be any scratches on the sideplate on the thumb screw side. The handle side it might. Hopefully your using this reel, it sounds like you are. It is made to take abuse so I think your taking the right attitude. The shipping cost are to crazy to sweat it.

I agree I will not sweat it. When it comes down to it fishing reels are great to look at and admire, but they are tools to catch fish. They are meant to be fished with. What I admire is THE BASS next to the tool in the photo.